Climate Action Plan

Join us on our journey

As one of the nation’s largest universities, our impact and influence should be a force for positive change. We are proud of our efforts to create a more sustainable campus, encourage conservation practices and advance research in sustainability solutions, and we look forward to doing more to benefit our environment and community.

Working toward a sustainable future isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also the smart thing to do. Since creating the 2007 Climate Action Plan, UCF has reduced campus energy use by 42 percent while saving an estimated $30 million in operating expenses and other costs to the university.

But we’re not done yet. Over the next 10 years, we plan to invest even more resources to push us closer to reaching our campus sustainability goals of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, achieving “zero waste” and integrating sustainability across all disciplines.

We’ll achieve this through a multifaceted approach that includes efficiency upgrades,increasing engagement and knowledge sharing. For example, we’ve already completed more than 20 Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certifications and, in 2018 alone, we participated in more than 8,500 volunteer hours at the Arboretum thanks to 900+ volunteers. Plus, in 2018, UCF became the host of the annual Climate Correction conference in partnership with the VoLo Foundation, aimed at engaging our community in solution-driven work.

Because of UCF’s faculty strengths, students’ passion and geographic location, we are able to solve local problems that have a global impact. Sustainability is one of those areas. We are very proud to lead this charge.

Sincerely,

Thad Seymour, Jr.Interim President

In 2007, we at UCF committed ourselves to becoming climate neutral by 2050 and since then have made significant strides in creating the infrastructure that will get us there. At UCF, we have a myriad of interdisciplinary faculty, staff, and students employing a systems approach to key sustainability opportunities.

Reducing our potable water consumption by 50 percent, increasing our renewable energy portfolio to 15 percent, and increasing our landfill diversion rate to 75 percent are among the many goals UCF teams are working toward. The efforts sparked by our Climate Action Plan has led to 38 percent reduction in energy consumption per gross square foot compared to before our efforts began.

We look forward to continuing our progress and revising the plan to reflect the urgency of climate action and the advancements in technology and social capital that will help us reach climate neutrality.